Indoor Pond

lemons · 12-27-2009, 03:14 PM

A local pet store here has one, and I asked the owner about it. It is a really neat idea.

He called the local tack and feed shop (for horses) and bought a 350 gallon fiberglass circular horse trough (used to hold water for horses to drink). Then stuck a pipe with a fountain head on it in the center, and there ya go, a nice fish pondwith a fountain. If I ever do it I would not include a fountain, but for the store I can totally understand. Just give your tack a feed store a call and see what they can order. It is pretty thick and very sturdy, and much cheaper than a glass tank.

Blue Cray · 12-27-2009, 05:23 PM

The fountain is probably either for filtration or oxygen, so you probably would want one.

lemons · 12-27-2009, 05:43 PM

The fountain at the store is for show and oxygen, just has the output of the filter going to the fountain i believe.

I probably would just use an air pump or the filter output to one of those bars with 20 little hole in it, i just dont like the fountain look.

**emc7** · 12-27-2009, 09:02 PM

horse troughs of any shape are good for fish. Theres a ~100 gal rectangle for around $100 that I've considered. I've seen nice indoor ponds in restaurants. Only drawback for home is the same as having any indoor hottub: lots of humidity in the room and lots of replacing evaporated water.

Tallonebball · 12-27-2009, 10:59 PM

Yeah indoor ponds are a neat idea but you gotta pick fish that look good from a top-down view point like koi. A lot of people like to do goldfish but I really think they look better from the side.
Some people actually try making it so you can see from some side of the point by installing a "window" but that seems costly and dangerous structurally.

lemons · 12-28-2009, 09:38 AM

Ya, the LFS that I got the idea from has koi.
I would say a would is dangerous, but if you did plexi-glass and did your research I think you could do it cheaply and safely, although I wouldn't try it. The only reason I would get one is to try to keep my sturgeon for a couple years until I go off to college, or maybe get a snake head, in which case I need to cover the pond very well anyway. But if you did decide to cover it I think it would be pretty easy because the fiber glass is so thick you could drill it and bolt on a frame for the top, and that could help stop humidity.

I never thought about the humidity issue. I guess it just doesn't matter for a pet store because they already have a hundred tanks.

I would do an auto top off direct from water line. I have well water so no chlorine and no heavy metals last time we got it tested, but I would still want to figure out a way to use tap water conditioner. I think you could use the float switch from the auto top off to run a little tiny motor to put in water condition as it fills with more water.

It isn't a perfect idea but I think most of the kinks can be worked out. Now the only things you need to worry about are finding room for it and deciding if you will need to heat it lol.

**emc7** · 12-28-2009, 09:51 AM

auto delivery of liquids is out there. Still kind of pricey, but the technology is sound and proven in the medical and chemical industries. If you really have good water, though, you may not need to add anything at all. There was a trend in the 70s for putting outdoor-type jacuzzi/spa things in bedrooms with carpet and drywall. Not a good idea. Mold is nasty stuff. Consider making an enclosure like you would a small bathroom with a water and mold resistant surfaces and a vented-to-the-outside fan.

lemons · 12-28-2009, 10:41 AM

Ya I would probably DIY it if I were to do it. With something like a 350 gallon or so horse trough a boat bilge pump float switch would be accurate enough for an autofill. just have to get an electrically operated valve then or something like that for the water. I don't have any tanks in my house, they are all in school or at my teachers house from the summer because my brother has a diminished immune system, so if I did it at all it would go in school.

Mikaila31 · 01-03-2010, 06:30 PM

Some people in the local fish club use them for outdoor breeding of tropical fish. There a whole article on how the set it up, I know they seed them with greenwater and daphnia then add plants. They throw in a breeding group of fish and usually don't touch the tank. No filters, no heaters, some use a small fountain for oxygen. Some collect fry and move them to another bin if the parents hunt them too much. Overflow holes with mesh coverings are suggested so the bin doesn't overflow when it rains. Come fall they get torn down and parents and their fry get brought inside.

**emc7** · 01-03-2010, 09:20 PM

I know people who do this in GA and TN, but that's outdoor, rather than indoor. I understand water lilies make a decent filter.

Redwings · 01-04-2010, 11:07 AM

My LFS has a I think 6 foot long 2 foot deep and looks 4 feet wide pond inside. They got some big 15+ inch koi in there all different colors.

Toshogu · 01-05-2010, 05:50 PM

The lfs I goto made an indoor pond using thick rubber tarp and bricks. All he did was take the bricks and make em into the shape he wanted and then placed the tarp down. it's a nice 8ft. x 6ft x 2ft enclosure with koi in it.

lemons · 01-05-2010, 06:03 PM

Toshogu, they make those plastic sheets specifically for this, for outdoor ponds so you don't lose water by it seeping into the ground. They are available at lowes sometimes, and online.